Orange County Social Services Agency v. Albert Z.

Opinion

FYBEL, J. INTRODUCTION

Albert Z. (Father) appealed from the juvenile court’s order terminating his parental rights to his daughter, then two-year-old A.Z. Father contended the [1179]juvenile court erred by finding inapplicable the parent-child relationship exception to the termination of parental rights under Welfare and Institutions Code section 366.26, subdivision (c)(l)(B)(i). In his appellate briefs, Father asserted, inter alia, his concern that A. “would lose eligibility for disability and Veteran’s Administration benefits that she would be entitled to through [him]” if his parental rights were terminated.

During the pendency of this appeal, Father’s counsel informed this court of Father’s death and filed a motion to dismiss the appeal as moot. We appointed counsel to represent A. and invited all parties to file supplemental briefs addressing the proper resolution of this appeal in light of A.’s best interests. For the reasons we explain, we dismiss the appeal as moot. We publish this opinion because the parties have not cited, and we have not found, any published opinion addressing the proper disposition of a dependency appeal when an appellant parent dies while the appeal is pending.

BACKGROUND

A. was taken into protective custody by the Orange County Social Services Agency (SSA) on July 7, 2008, and was placed in the home of her paternal aunt and uncle (the prospective adoptive parents) four days later. On July 9, SSA filed a juvenile dependency petition in Orange County Juvenile Court, which alleged A. came within the juvenile court’s jurisdiction under Welfare and Institutions Code section 300, subdivision (b) (failure to protect) and subdivision (j) (abuse of sibling). In view of the issue before us, we need not recite the allegations of the petition, as amended, or the SSA reports. Father pleaded nolo contendere to the allegations of the amended petition. The juvenile court sustained the allegations of the amended petition and approved a case plan for Father.

At the 12-month review hearing, the court terminated Father’s reunification services and set a permanency hearing. The juvenile court found A. adoptable. The court also found that none of the exceptions to Welfare and Institutions Code section 366.26, subdivision (c)(1) applied and ordered Father’s and A.’s mother’s parental rights terminated. Father appealed from the court’s order terminating his parental rights solely on the ground the court erred by finding inapplicable the parent-child relationship exception to the termination of parental rights. A.’s mother is not a party to this appeal.